Drawing the curtain on Chapter Two
Faster than a TikTok dance craze, we've come to the end of our newsletter series! In an exciting two prior weeks, our Zoomers have been busy sharing their thoughts, opinions and ideas on not just Emergency Response & Lifesaving Intervention as a cause but specifically on you: RNLI and St John's Ambulance.
They've taken a detailed look into some of your materials and shared what drives them to engage across volunteering, donating, fundraising and campaigning. Not only that, but we've also asked them to unpick the key moments in their life for charities to best approach them to capture their support.
So, swipe (or scroll) down to get stuck into a snapshot of what they told us!
They love your work!
Not only do our Zoomers have a huge amount of respect and appreciation for what you do as an organisation, they're also extremely buoyed by the fact that you're engaging with them specifically as an audience - as they can feel a bit neglected when it comes to charities:
"I feel very good about them because first aid is very important. It's also very nice to see they are doing research to target the younger audience."
"It's really a good gesture to have such a discussion. They should actually be engaging more with us as a young generation, most importantly on social media."
Their Key Piece of Advice? Social Media, and making them feel involved.
They were consistent in their belief that RNLI and St John's Ambulance could make greater use of social media - it's where they're hanging out and having their most interactions! Alongside that, making them feel more involved with initiatives aimed directly at them can catch their eye:
"Make sure that your opportunities for young people make us feel like valuable people in the room, and in their charities."
"I think the best way they can do this is through social media! We spend so much time on it, so it’s a missed opportunity to leave it out."
Welcome to Quick Wins:
In this section, we highlight a sample of quick and actionable tactics that could help to drive engagement with our Zoomers, whether it be across Fundraising, Donating, Volunteering or Campaigning. They are all based on the specific ways you've spoken about these critical areas in your materials, so let's dive in!
Fundraising & Donating: Highlight ease, be specific & offer support
Volunteering: Be age relevant, and show Gen Z the skills they can gain
Campaigning: Empower Gen Z with specific actions & real-life stories
Put it to a Vote!
As we know (very well!) there are many different ways of supporting a charity. But we wanted to explore what determines the type of support Zoomers want to give.
We did this by asking our Zoomers to tell us if they agree or disagree with 3 key statements to get them to pin their colours to the mast.
Statement A: "It's all about the time in your life. When I've got money one day, I'll donate money regularly. If I've got more free time, I'll volunteer. It's kind of a life-stage thing."
Statement B: "It's about the kind of person you are. If I like socialising or I like the idea of being part of something, I'll volunteer or campaign. Or I might be the kind of person who just wants to give money as that's easiest. It's a personality thing."
Statement C: "Once you've supported a charity in one way, it's easier to support in another way. If I've raised money for a charity once, it's easier to convince me to campaign for them another time."
Scroll down to see how the Emergency Response cause collective voted, why they felt the way they did, alongside what it means for you!
Finally, we asked Gen Z to pull out their AI-predicting digital crystal ball and cast their eyes into their own futures to take a stab at how their relationships with your charities might evolve. They see lifestage as being a particularly important influence on when and how they'd be likely to get involved:
"I believe I would donate more money as I will have more disposable income (when I find a stable income). Even further down the line, when I have children, I would most likely donate more time to charities to teach my children about the importance of giving."
"So when I commence a full time, stable job, I hope to not only increase regular monthly contributions but also to give donations on an ad hoc basis so I can support more of a wide range of charities. It would be the best time for me to support charities financially as I would not have the constraints of studying/unemployment so I could dedicate a decent chunk of my time to supporting charities."
How might we encourage ongoing support over a lifetime?
Zoomers often perceive their likely contributions to initially be giving a little, every now and then. But in the moment, this can feel as though it lacks significance, and support can lose momentum.
Imagine a world where this audience could build a 'Supporter Profile' to keep a record of these seemingly small efforts over their 20s, 30s and 40s. Wouldn't it be great if we could help them track their impact by showing the progress of their commitments throughout a lifetime. So when they feel capable of giving more time, money or effort (possibly before the age of 50!), they have an established track record to fall back on, and crucially are 'bought' into your cause.
For now - explore meaningful ways you can help Zoomers track their impact that's also feasible for your organisation to manage.